Loving one’s work is always important, but especially so when that work involves being in constant contact with people who are in love. It helps, too, that James Mitchell, who officiates at more than 200 weddings a week at the Manhattan Marriage Bureau, is happily married himself.

Mr. Mitchell, who grew up on Staten Island, like many boys, wanted to become a professional baseball player. Early on, it became clear that he did not have the skills for that.

He studied computer programming and accounting at the Staten Island campus of St. John’s University, and for 17 years after graduation worked for his father’s direct-mail advertising business.

Then came Sept. 11. He wanted to leave New York and in 2003 moved to Jupiter, Fla., to open a dog biscuit bakery. That became a casualty of the recession.

“Emotionally and economically, we wanted to come home to our family and friends,” he said.

He began looking for work in New York, where his résumé landed on the desk of Michael McSweeney, the New York City clerk. In 2010, he hired Mr. Mitchell as his floor supervisor at the Manhattan Marriage Bureau, which had recently opened in a space once occupied by the Department of Motor Vehicles.

One duty was to perform ceremonies when the bureau was understaffed. After getting glowing reviews from some of the couples, however, it became clear that Mr. Mitchell had found his calling. In 2011 he was appointed the main marriage officiant.

“In a very short period of time, we realized that he has the perfect personality, the perfect understanding and sensitivity,” Mr. McSweeney said. “The guy talks about his wife all the time, and he’s happily married. He’s somebody who has everything going for him. It’s a perfect fit.”

Mr. Mitchell, 47, has performed more than 27,000 wedding ceremonies. He still loves it, and he still tears up from time to time.

“On Sundays, I look forward to coming to work,” he said. “It might be my 50th or 100th, but it’s still their only marriage ceremony, and I want to do my last as well as my first,” he said.

Mr. Mitchell can complete a ceremony in about a minute, but some couples want to personalize theirs, so many last longer. Some write their vows, others bring music to play over the stereo system and still others Skype the ceremony to their families in places like Italy, Russia or China.

Mr. Mitchell said he and his colleagues do their best to accommodate special requests, and try to follow the maxim “Don’t interfere with anyone else’s happiness.”

One never knows what might happen.

Mr. Mitchell will not soon forget the seven-piece klezmer band that provided the coda to a wedding in late January.

“They left the chapel and walked down the hallway playing the whole time,” he said. “All of the employees came out to watch. It was one of the most amazing sights I’ve ever seen. It was a beautiful thing.”

On a Monday morning earlier this month, Mr. Mitchell was busy fielding questions and guiding couples into the two chapels and the waiting area, He remains the floor supervisor.

“We’re the happy building; next door, they’re not so happy,” he said, referring to one of the courthouses, “but we’re happy.”

As Mr. Mitchell enters a chapel, he shouts, “Welcome, guys! How you doing?” He introduces himself, occasionally to couples who do not speak English, and takes pains to pronounce even the most unusual-sounding names correctly.

After a dash of advice (“There’s nothing to be nervous about. The hardest thing is finding the person”) he then begins the ceremony with an air that suggests a 19th-century orator.

He is playful, yet serious. He performs all of his ceremonies with a blend of familiarity and formality that seems fitting for a place where white satin and dinner jackets mingle with blue denim, where the gift shop sells veils and bridal bouquets alongside packets of dental floss and eyeglass repair kits.

Just before Christmas, Mr. Mitchell officiated at the wedding of Alejandra Villagra and Jason van Dalen.“For me it felt like we had found a professional speaker, a Broadway showman, a preacher and a caring family man all in one,” Mr. van Dalen wrote in an e-mail. “I say this as an admitted jaded New Yorker; I am always on the lookout for insincerity and found absolutely none.”

When Mr. Mitchell was in the second grade at the Holy Rosary School on Staten Island, he met a third grader named Mary Marron. Romance did not bloom until they became reacquainted in 1991. They were married in 2000 at the Holy Rosary Church and now live in Great Kills, Staten Island, with their dog, Peppy, and their cat, Jet.

Mrs. Mitchell is not surprised that her husband, who regularly receives thank-you notes from couples, is so well loved at his job.

“He is a romantic, not overly, but he’s a firm believer in marriage, the institution and love and all that kind of stuff,” she said. “And he’s genuine.”

Mr. Mitchell loves the busy days most.

“I love Fridays, and Valentine’s Day is another day I love,” he said. “You know you’re going to be busy, but you’re going to have the big parties. You can feed off of their excitement.”

His favorite day was Sunday, July 24, 2011, when same-sex marriage became legal in New York State. He officiated at only one ceremony that day, but 484 marriages were performed at the bureau’s five offices.

“We were a part of history,” he said. “And then the love and excitement and the joy. Everyone who came out of the chapel got a cheer. It was like you were in a stadium. It was phenomenal.”

While Mr. Mitchell is grateful for his job, he is quick to point out that it is not all roses and Champagne.

On most days, the bureau performs about 40 to 70 ceremonies and on Fridays, 120 to 150. That is some 350 to 450 ceremonies a week. Of those, Mr. Mitchell performs roughly 60 to 80 percent, usually topping 200 a week.

All that emoting gets exhausting, and he often becomes hoarse. And while most people who go to the marriage bureau are in festive moods, that is not always the case.

“You’re dealing with the public, you’re dealing with personalities,” he said. “It’s like anything else, it’s a job, but this is one of the better jobs I’ve had. I like the people I work with and there’s a lot more happiness than there is anything else. How many city employees are surrounded by love all day?”

A version of this article appears in print on February 17, 2013, on page ST17 of the New York edition with the headline: ‘Surrounded by Love All Day’. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe